Essence Of The Ancients

ESSENCE OF THE ANCIENTS

By Jill McCoomber

Imagine the others who have shared this view over the tencenturies the Wukoki communal dwelling has existed. This window looks down into lower territory toward the northwest.

Several large stone structures are attributed to the Sinagua Indians, who thrived for hundreds – and maybe even thousands – of years in northern Arizona north of Flagstaff, in what is now Wupatki and Sunset Crater National Monuments. The original inhabitants mysteriously abandoned the region about 800 years ago.

Native American petroglyphs carved in a streambed’s basalt and granite bedrock by the ancestors of the Mojave Indians 600 to 900 years old can be found, seen, and touched in Grapevine Canyon. In the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, a few miles northwest of Laughlin, Nevada, on the west side of Lake Mohave, an easy dirt road and sandy walking trail takes you to this amazing prehistoric art tableau. See it while it’s still here!